Six Nations 2014: Owen Farrell must stop Jamie Roberts at source if England are to defeat Wales at Twickenham

England have a very simple option if they want to win, and that is to stop
Jamie Roberts. So who is the man tasked with this unenviable task of
stopping the Welsh Desperate Dan? Step up Owen Farrell, writes Will Greenwood

The style of Warren Gatland – I do not like the term “Warrenball” – is a simple one. Names his team early, no smoke and mirrors, says it how it is. Full transparency of intent.

You do not need to be a genius to see that Jamie Roberts is their key man. Wales will use him in a variety of ways with the same purpose – to win the gain line.

Off the top of line-outs, he can run a short ball off Rhys Priestland, trying to attack inside defensive shoulders, or choose a straight line and pick up a long pass from the scrum-half. Or he can attack an outside shoulder off one of his forwards, on the peel, at the tail of the line-out.

What matters is getting the big man close to, and over, the gain line, moving at speed and trusting him to break the tackle, find a gap, or do just enough footwork to get in behind. Do this, and the Welsh game plan goes well.

From the breakdown the next runner comes around the corner, and Wales have momentum. The first runner is often Richard Hibbard, and he hardly makes things easy for the opposition. Everyone knows it is coming, and no one in the Wales

set-up cares what the opposition do to try to stop it. Roberts, and the collective, are good enough to cope.

England have a very simple requirement if they are to win: stop Roberts. So who is the man with this unenviable task? Step up Owen Farrell, the fly-half who has been praised for his attacking intent of late and a new-found ability to get the back-line moving, and whose defensive abilities will be tested to the maximum tomorrow.

Farrell is at the heart of an England defensive line that has found both speed and aggression and, for me, has been the most impressive and consistent part of their game over this Six Nations.

Against Ireland their speed to the tackle was inspiring. Jonny Sexton and Brian O’Driscoll are not known for giving the ball away cheaply but were under so much pressure that they resorted to chips from deep. This was not a clever strategy, but they had nowhere to go as the white blanket descended.

Importantly, England have also managed to keep the intensity of their line speed throughout matches. Against France, in the 70th minute they were urging each other to get up and keep hunting. There was hunger, and expletives, in their calls. This was a team who hunted as a pack of wolves.

Against Wales they will need to increase their intensity another notch because, if they stop Roberts, they can put the brakes on Wales.

Farrell seems to be revelling in the role of defensive leader and is a player who has a bit of niggle that usually is not present in a fly-half, unless he is from South Africa. Farrell hunts the tackle and is happy to follow through after the ball has gone. It is a risky strategy at times, and can carry a points penalty, but it also signals a physicality that England have been developing in the contact areas.

They will need it because there are big confrontations across the park. Dylan Hartley will be going after Hibbard in all aspects of the game; it will be a clash of quality hookers on the world stage. Big men and big carriers, these talismans never back away from a confrontation and are always in the teeth of the action.

Hibbard has had more of an impact in the loose, and was huge against France. Hartley, though, is one up in the set-piece, and the

line-out has been a weapon of choice for England. It is there that Alun-Wyn Jones will take on the young guns of England: Courtney Lawes and Joe Launchbury.

In the back row, there is the juiciest of confrontations. Last year, the Millennium Stadium did for Chris Robshaw and Tom Wood, neither going on to be a Lion, and that will stoke fires in the changing room. Let it out lads, talk about revenge, it has been eating you up for nearly a year now.

Sam Warburton had his best game for a long time against France, with his contract talks completed, and niggles gone. He will be looking to show that, when it matters, he has that extra yard of pace to the breakdown.

At No8 we have a cracker; what a shame we will not see Billy Vunipola up against Taulupe Faletau, but Ben Morgan is a good replacement for England. He is more exposed as a starter and – as the solid performer rather than impact player – needs to play a different role to Vunipola but he has the skills to do a powerful job for England.

Shift out into the back line and Danny Care wants pace, pace, pace. If the pack use the Northampton boys to dictate the line-out, then the Quins are providing rhythm and breaking the line.

Rhys Webb, Care’s opposite number, provides a great service for Wales. Against France, he gave width to his pass and allowed the big Welsh midfield to run at backs, not forwards. Care is a headline stealer, Webb an enabler; both teams like it that way.

For the rest of the backs, it will be a game of looking after the big guys. Roberts will be Farrell’s job, while there is a good chance the rest will be needed to contain George North.

North is a phenomenon and there is so much more to his game than the battering ram. The English back line will need to keep him busy defending. Their accuracy and precision of pass will be crucial – it was turnovers that took the game away from England last year.

North will be sniffing around the loose ball. England also have to be aware of the outside break. For Ireland, O’Driscoll slid around Billy Twelvetrees early on but was denied by Luther Burrell. Wales will look to get on the outside of these guys because, while Farrell, Burrell, Twelvetrees can match Wales for size, they do not offer the same pace.

England will need to shine in that initial contact, especially as it can have a long-lasting impact. In 2000, Jonny Wilkinson hit Emile Ntamack with one of the best tackles I have ever seen. France had identified Jonny as a young, possibly weak link. He never blinked and his tackle cemented his reputation, and launched a team.

England have a chance to throw down a marker. Once again it could be the fly-half and his love of tackling that holds the key.